


Three Hearts

by sartietingles



Series: Sartie Week [4]
Category: Glee
Genre: DW!Glee, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-07-04
Updated: 2012-07-04
Packaged: 2017-11-09 03:27:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,588
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/450744
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sartietingles/pseuds/sartietingles
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Doctor!Artie finds Sam Evans, homeless and hopeless, and he decides to take him with him on his adventures in the TARDIS.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Three Hearts

**Author's Note:**

> If you're not familliar with Doctor Who there's not much you need to know for this - just that the Doctor (Artie) is an alien called a Time Lord and he regenerates into various forms, and this form is Artie set about two regenerations after the current Doctor. He has a ship called the TARDIS and travels in time and hooray happy fun times.

Sam Evans sat, slumped against a building, his stomach rumbling, his mouth dry. He got up to find a bathroom somewhere, his shoes already on his feet as last time he slept without them they had been stolen. He sighed, slinging his backpack onto his shoulder, glad no one had tried to take it during the cold night, and miserably trod down the street where he'd slept, watching dawn break and wondering what the point of it all was.

He reached a corner and noticed there was a great kerfuffle going on in the usually quiet streets. Sam poked his head around the corner, curiosity replacing his melancholy.

A figure in a wheelchair zoomed past, followed by a long line of men in suits who seemed to be chasing him. Sam pondered the strange event for a moment, then dismissed it and turned around, back onto the side-streets, wandering with no aim.

He didn't get very far when out of an alley came a strange voice.

"Hey!" it said.

Sam peeked around hesitantly, on guard in case someone was trying something with him.

It was the guy in the wheelchair. He looked young, younger than Sam, but there was something… old about him. He had a striking appearance; a colourful vest, a white shirt buttoned all the way up, a bowtie and glasses that framed those old, honest eyes.

"Would you happen to know a good place to hide?" asked he hurriedly.

The young man piqued Sam's curiosity again. "What from?"

He chuckled mysteriously. "That will take far too long to explain."

Though confused, Sam's usual giving nature kicked in (it had been out of practice because recently he'd had nothing to give), and he obliged. "I know somewhere you can blend in?" he suggested, and the young man grinned, like he'd begun a new game.

"That sounds perfect," he said. "Can I ask your name?"

"Sam," Sam extended a hand in greeting. The man leaned forward and kissed it.

"The pleasure is mine, Sam," he said grandly.

Sam stared.

The man's eyes narrowed. "Wait - what year is it?"

"2014," Sam said, not sure how to take a question like that.

"Oh," the stranger breathed, slapping himself briefly on the head. "So it's more like," he shuffled a little in his seat, then pulled Sam in for a handshake-hug, "Give me some skin, dog!"

"That's a little closer, yeah," Sam laughed. He hadn't laughed in a long time.

The stranger applauded with a joyous grin, definitely looking very young again. "Awesome! This is like my favourite era."

Sam grinned despite his confusion. "Mine too?" he tried, still laughing.

So Sam and the stranger headed in the direction of the soup kitchen Sam went to occasionally.

They sat down in the crowded hall, munching on thick, warm pumpkin soup. Sam scraped his bowl clean, unable to recall when he'd last eaten this well - or at all. His friend (he felt alright calling him that already for some reason) was only nibbling at his, so he offered the rest to Sam who took it only after much persuasion. Then Sam realised there was something missing.

"Can I ask  _your_  name?"

The blue eyed boy gave another mysterious chuckle. "I have many names," he said grandly, before adding in a stage whisper. "Some are a little too well known around these parts if you know what I mean."

Sam had no idea what he meant but he nodded enthusiastically anyway.

"So you can call me Artie, I guess," Artie said. "That'll do!"

"Well, it's very nice to meet you, Artie," Sam smiled, taking Artie's hand and kissing it jokingly.

Artie let out a musical laugh that Sam wanted to memorise and keep in his head forever.

They smiled at each other for a while, and then Artie looked around frantically. There was a low, droning sound in the distance.

"Well, it truly has been a pleasure, Sam," Artie said. "But I really must be going."

"OK," Sam said agreeably. "Do you know your way back? Because I can help if you need me."

Artie stopped his rushing for just a moment to sigh, smile, and mutter, "Humans!" in a fond tone.

The droning got louder.

Then there was a crash.

A small army of men in suits had knocked down the doors of the soup kitchen.

"DOCTOR," they chanted in unison in droning, inhuman voices that boomed throughout the hall. "WE HAVE WARRANT FOR YOUR ARREST."

People scrambled away in terror. A young woman stumbled over a chair, falling to the floor in her panic, and Sam immediately went to help her up.

"SAM," Artie's voice rang over the crowd. "GET OUT OF HERE."

Sam turned to see the suits forming a ring around Artie. Confused but determined and sensing danger, he ran over to help him.

The suits turned around to face him in alarming unison. There was a flash. Everything went black.

Sam woke up on a cold floor in a large room. The lights burned his eyes at first, but then he found them colourful and warm.

_Where was he?_

A voice echoed through the room, answering the question.

"Hey there, sleepy human!" the voice was kind and sweet and there was a smile to it that Sam longed to see with his eyes as well as his ears. He tried to sit up but a burning sensation in his chest stopped him. He groaned slightly in pain.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," Artie said wisely, but concern cut through his tone and he sigh and rolled towards Sam to help him up.

"Where am I?"

"The question is: when are you?"

"Is it?"

"That joke will be funnier once I explain everything else."

Artie was something called a Time Lord, it seemed. He travelled around in time having all sorts of adventures. The suits that were after him had shot Sam with some kind of very powerful stunner, so he'd be out of action for a few weeks. Artie had had quite the elaborate escape, and was kind of disappointed Sam had missed it all. And he'd taken him with him because he was too injured and too much associated with Artie to be left behind.

"Why were they chasing you?" Sam asked, all this information spinning in his brain.

Artie sighed. "In order to save a rather large planet," he began. "A few expensive spaceships suffered some collateral damage and… they're suing me." He scoffed. "That's space lawyers for you."

Sam gaped. "Planets? Spaceships? Space... lawyers? This is like stepping into a comic book or something. Am I dreaming?"

Artie's face lit up. "Are you a sci-fi fan?"

Sam nearly screamed yes.

Artie applauded again with that childish grin. "Oh, you are my favourite kind of human!"

He fiddled with some controls in the centre of the room that Sam was only just noticing, his head still spinning slightly. He then helped Sam, who couldn't move very much without feeling like he was on fire, up onto his lap and wheeled him to the doorway, opening it up and-

"Sweet Jesus on a stick."

Artie looked impressed. "That's a new one."

Sam nearly had tears in his eyes as he looked out the window – stars and comets and ripples of galaxies danced past them. A large blue planet loomed in the distance. Not Earth – somewhere new.  _Somewhere new,_  Sam thought, his mind overcome with joy at the thought. The dark was so bright and the colours were so vivid Sam had to grip Artie's hand, which was around his waist, just so he wouldn't swoon too much, and faint and fall out.

"You like?" Artie checked.

"I love."

"Well good!" Artie exclaimed, slamming the door shut and ignoring Sam's whimper. "Because there's a lot more to see once you get better!"

"And until then?" Sam asked, looking longingly at the door.

Artie looked thoughtful. "I have Cluedo! Humans like Cluedo right?"

And so, for the next few weeks, Sam slowly got better - that is, it stopped feeling like he was burning whenever he breathed and other good things - and he got to know Artie better too. They hung around amicably, laughing at how weird each thought the other was, and marvelling at how oddly similar they were despite that.

"How long can I stay with you?" Sam blurted one morning as they sat in the TARDIS, Sam reading one of an infinite stack of books and Artie whacking some unfamiliar contraption with a spanner. He ignored Sam briefly, giving the thing another few good whacks and leaving some dents before holding it out in front of himself proudly.

"Fixed!" Artie beamed at Sam, waving the thing.

"Awesome!" Sam couldn't keep down an adoring grin. He waited for the answer as Artie rolled around the thing, admiring its fixed-ness.

"Well, you should definitely stay til you're fully over that stunner," Artie said thoughtfully. "And I do owe you at least a few trips to wherever or whenever you like…" he went on, then looked up at Sam and smiled. "And after that you can stay as long as you like!"

And Sam was so happy to hear it.

The day when Artie decided Sam was well enough to go out, Sam was practically jumping with excitement. He actually did bounce around and Artie watched on and chuckled fondly. Sam turned around when he heard the laugh, smiling hugely at who it came from.

Artie was dressed in a sweater vest and a bowtie just like the day Sam had met him. Since then he'd decided they were going to pyjama party the hell out of the TARDIS as Sam was sick and who the hell wears clothes when they're sick, so Sam hadn't seen him dressed properly in a good while.

He looked Artie up and down indulgently, choosing the least inappropriate comment his brain could find. "Nice bowtie."

Artie grinned. "Oh you would have loved the old version of me."

"This version's pretty good," Sam flirted, looking Artie up and down again because  _damn_. It had taken him a few days to realise how attractive he found Artie. It had kind of snuck up on him, because among all the things to notice about Artie ( _he's so nice he's so funny he's so caring he has such a stupid laugh he eats so messily he's so good at Cluedo_ , Sam gushed internally) he was kind of overwhelmed. But once he'd realised how gorgeous Artie was he couldn't, no matter how he tried, stop noticing.

Artie waved a flattered arm in response, his cheeks growing a shade redder. He asked Sam where he wanted to go.

Sam's brain threatened to combust when given the option of going anywhere in time and space, so Artie decided for him. They went to Tokyo in the 2400s. Artie thought he'd start Sam off somewhere tame - because Tokyo's always kind of looked like this and if he took Sam to meet a wookiee he'd probably cry. They wandered the streets together and went to dinner, served by robotic waiters who were surprisingly charming.

But, as always happened whenever Artie went anywhere, shit got cray. The robots in this restaurant, it turned out, had been feeding on the patrons for weeks now and had been the site of hundreds upon hundreds of disappearances. Sam and Artie thwarted the robots before desert could be served with Artie's quick wit and Sam's compassion and they went back to the TARDIS feeling particularly chuffed.

"Does this kind of stuff always happen to you?" Sam asked.

"You have no idea."

After that they went everywhere Sam could have dreamed of, getting up to all sorts of shenanigans, rescuing people and whole populations and eating strange alien delicacies. Sam did end up crying when he met his first wookiee. She'd been slightly offended before Artie explained that he was just a big fan.

Something caused Sam confusion when Artie ran into an old friend who didn't recognise him at all, until Artie explained that he'd regenerated. It reminded him of the comment Artie had made a few weeks ago about this 'version' of him and though at the time Sam had been too busy checking him out to properly thoughts, his confusion was properly setting into his mind.

When they got back to the TARDIS, Sam asked. "Wait - what did you mean by 'new version' of you?"

"Oh, we haven't had that talk yet?" Artie responded.

"No?"

Artie explained that he was the 13th form of the same guy, and around 1000 years old (he'd stopped counting because he was getting a little sensitive about his age).

Sam looked impressed. "You look pretty good for your age," he commented.

"Damn straight!" Artie exclaimed.

Sam was curious. "Is there anything else I should know about you?

"Time Lord things? Yeah, there are loads of those. Two hearts, for example!"

Sam scoffed in disbelief.

"I'm a time travelling alien who has taken you on board and the great expanse of time and space including ancient Rome and your planet in 1000 years the bit you find hard to believe is two hearts?" Artie mocked.

Sam laughed, still looking like he didn't believe him.

"Here, feel!" Artie invited, taking Sam's hand and placing it over one heart and then the other.

"Wow," Sam breathed, the alien-ness of Artie  _really_  sinking in now. He moved his hand back to the first heart when he noticed something. "They're beating really fast."

"Yes," Artie agreed thoughtfully, putting a hand over Sam's absent-mindedly. "It's been doing that a lot recently. I checked and I haven't found any medical reason to explain it." He shrugged." I should figure it out soon enough."

Sam removed his hand and placed it over his own, beating equally fast. His stomach jolted the realisation dawned on him; he was falling for this boy.

Well, not boy, 1000 year old alien.

But still, nothing else could explain these feelings. And as Artie, whose hands were now on his chest, was exclaiming how strange it must be to only have one heart, Sam wasn't sure if he hoped or feared Artie was feeling the same.

* * *

One night in between stop-offs, Sam and Artie were sitting on the floor opposite each other. Sam was reading a book of fairytales from Artie's home-planet intently, and Artie was watching Sam intently.

After a while Sam noticed Artie's gaze. "You ok?" he asked, a blush forming in his cheeks as he met those kind blue eyes.

Artie smiled back at him. "Humans are funny," he explained, and continued to watch Sam.

Sam tried to continue the book but he couldn't get those eyes out of his mind. Bluer than any sea or sky he'd ever seen and so full of everything. He was sure if he looked hard enough he'd see galaxies spinning in those eyes. He gave in to temptation, looking up again and meeting the eyes of the alien who'd been haunting his mind and his dreams and his heart ever since his first night on the TARDIS. Artie could be anywhere in time or space, with anyone, but he chose to be here with Sam, watching him read in the dim light.

It was with that thought that Sam found himself putting the book down, shifting onto his knees and leaning forward to kiss Artie. Their lips met and there was an explosion in Sam's heart. Artie's breath was warm and fast on his face and his tongue slid into his mouth and Sam wasn't sure if it was some kind of alien magic or something but he was sure he's never felt anything like this when kissing anyone before. He was sucking on Artie's bottom lip and moving to put his arms around his neck, his hands in his hair, and hold him close and never let go when he felt Artie pulling away.

"Stop, Sam, you need to stop," Artie pleaded, a fragility showing on his face that Sam didn't think he'd ever see.

"What?" Sam asked thickly. He couldn't understand why anyone would want to stop doing that because wow. "Is that not how they do it on your planet?" he checked, half-joking and half-worried he'd totally grossed Artie out with his humanness.

"No, Sam, it's not that," Artie whispers glumly, his hands still on Sam's, clutching like he'll lose him if he lets go. "I've been through this before with humans. It never works out."

There was a darkness to his tone that Sam couldn't quite place, but he challenged Artie anyway. "It doesn't have to be like that," he insisted. "We could be so good together."

"Sam, no," Artie said, more sternly this time.

"I just-" Sam stuttered desperately, not wanting to lose this perfect thing when they were so close. "Why not? What's the worst that could happen?"

Artie was getting hysterical now. "Oh, I don't know?" He was yelling. "You could… die? Get stuck in another universe? Get so damaged beyond repair that you'd die anything made you remember me?" there were tears glistening in his eyes. He'd let go of Sam's hands and was scrambling back into his chair.

Sam shook his head. "That stuff won't happen, Artie."

"It already has," Artie's voice cracked. "And even if it doesn't you'd leave me. If people survive long enough to have the option they always leave me." Artie thought of the simple girl he'd fallen for from a planet that seemed like a children's story book, or the dark, intense soldier girl with the colours in her hair who had this radiant smile that'd she'd always saved just for him… until someone else came along.

"I would never leave you," Sam whispers, first anxious at the feel of this absolutely superlative statement on his lips, until he realised it was true.

Artie laughed coldly. "That's what they all say." He was rolling away into another room.

"Artie, do you know what I had before you found me?"

Artie didn't turn around. Didn't answer.

"I had nothing. I'd given up on myself. I had no friends… no family," Sam said, his voice cracking. "I hadn't eaten for days and was giving up, trying to figure out a way to die quietly so some poor person wouldn't find my body and be traumatised or something."

Artie nearly smiled. Trust Sam to not want to inconvenience anyone even when dying. But… he stopped the smile before it surfaced. He just couldn't have feelings like this. He couldn't handle this anymore.

"You gave me a second shot," Sam went on. "You saved me. Every day I have now is because of you. So I'm not afraid," Sam walked towards Artie, placing a hand tenderly on his shoulder, "of you – or, or anything that could happen. I just want to be like this for as long as we can."

Artie shook Sam off and stormed out.

Sam went to bed, wondering what could happen now and cursing himself for royally screwing up with his stupid humany-wumany feelings.

The TARDIS rudely woke him up by tossing him out of bed as she jolted around, landing somewhere.

He crept out of bed, wondering if Artie's brought him back to where they met, getting rid of him. He sees that the doors are wide open and the light is streaming in.

His head peeking out the door, holding his dressing gown close, Sam tiptoes out onto an unmistakably alien but strikingly familiar planet. Neon trees lit the still-dark dawn, revealing trees and flowers and creatures that were so strange but so amazing. He walked over to a tree, touching it gingerly, taking everything in.

Then he realised.

He'd had  _dreams_  about this place ever since he was fifteen years old. This was the planet from his favourite movie,  _Avatar_.

"Pandora," he whispered.

Artie emerged from behind a tree and rolled up beside him.

"I was hoping you'd like it," he said sheepishly.

"I love it," Sam whispered, spinning around, trying to take it all in.

Artie laughed. "James Cameron owes me so much money."

Sam laughed too, and looked down at Artie who was grinning up at him. He forgot the planet, the trees and the noises at the sight of him. He could be anywhere and it would always be this beautiful if he was with Artie. He went to touch his face, to thank him, but he remembered the night before and recoiled.

"No," Artie said, taking Sam's hand before it flew back to his side. "It's ok, Sam."

"It is?" Sam stared at their entwined fingers that were sending tingles up his spine.

"I'm sorry," Artie went on. "I was so afraid of losing you... I'm damaged goods you know," he laughed sadly. "I've seen so much and there are just... some things I never want you to see."

Sam took Artie's other hand and knelt down in front of him. "And I don't you to ever have to see those things without me there for you."

Artie laughed. "Exactly," he said. "I think I need you, Sam."

"I definitely need you," Sam responded.

"Well it's settled then!" Artie exclaimed widely, his face scrunching in a grin. His expression softened and became more serious as he lowered his voice. "I want to spend as much of forever as I can with you."

"Sounds good to me," Sam grinned, and as Artie knelt down to kiss him he knew this was going to be a fucking fantastic forever indeed.


End file.
